Reminder: Special election on Tuesday, August 15

SYLACAUGA, Ala. – Tuesday, August 15, is election day – a special election called to fill an Alabama seat in the United States Senate formerly held by Jeff Sessions.

But there’s a new twist starting this year. In May, the Alabama Legislature passed Act 2017-340, which prohibits voters from switching parties between primary elections.

If you vote in a primary election and want to vote in a primary runoff election, you must vote in the same political party for both. However, if you do not vote in a political party’s primary election and would like to vote in the primary runoff election, you may choose the party for which you would like to vote in the primary runoff election.

Nine Republicans and seven Democrats are competing in the primary, and no candidate in either party has polled high enough to suggest there will not be a runoff between the top two candidates on September 26. Each party’s nominee will compete in the general election on December 1, and the winner will serve until Sessions’ term was set to expire in 2020.